Assignment #3- IT'S A TWISTER! IT'S A TWISTER!

The sky is darkening and the wind is picking up. You hear something beating off of your roof overhead. Is it rain? Hail? Flying cows? Tornados are very violent storms that can cause a lot of destruction. Imagine the worst thunderstorm you have ever been in and multiply it by 10!
Students and parents, we have been talking about different types of weather this week and what causes it. Take a moment to read through the Tornado Lab on National Geographic's Forces of Nature website at http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/forces-of-nature/ . As you read and go through the activity, answer these questions on a piece of notebook paper:

1. What does a tornado sound like?
2. Where do the most tornadoes occur?
3. Why do tornadoes usually occur in the afternoon?
4. What is the size of an average twister?
5. What kind of damages do tornadoes do?
6. When is a tornado warning issued?
7. After creating your own tornado, what conditions need to be present to produce a tornado?

When you are finished, feel free to explore the internet to learn more about tornadoes. Parents may help search Youtube videos of tornadoes or read National Geographic articles about tornadoes. Bring the answers to your questions to class because tomorrow we will be discussing tornadoes and how they are formed. Hold onto your hats boys and girls, this could get a little windy!

Assignment #2-If I were the President

November is approaching and that means election month! It also means that you get a day off of school. So, to keep your minds fresh and remind you why you get this day off of school every year I have an activity for you. Have you every wondered what the President does? He doesn't just sit around in his office shooting paper wads into a basket! In his line of work if he doesn't pick the right people that will advise him on how to help our nation we could all be in big trouble. See if you would make a good Mr./Mrs. President one day. Go to http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/games_quizzes/electiongame/game.asp and follow the directions. Choose your advisors carefully because they help you make important decisions. Then, choose how you would spend our country's budget. Be careful though! You better have a good reason for putting all of our nation's money into the police force, state parks, healthcare, or education. When you are finished, print off the newspaper article at the end and bring it to class.

Parents, with election day approaching we have been discussing our government and how it is run. Even though this isn't a Presidential election year it is still important for us to discuss what the President's job entails. During this assignment take time to read through the different options with your child. Answer any questions they have as best as you can. Who knows, maybe one day your child could be President!

Assignment #1-Tell me a story

Do you often find yourself not knowing what to write about? Are you stumped? Have writer's block? Look no further than this assignment for all your writing needs!

Students, I want you to go to the bottom of this page and click on the link. This will take you to "Story Starters: Creative Writing Prompts for Kids" on Scholastic.com. From there I want you to follow the directions the page gives you. Pick a theme, enter your name, and pick the correct grade level, 4-6 (you are not in 2nd grade anymore, no matter how bad you wish you were!) Spin the lever and try to stick with the first prompt that shows up, even though there is an option to spin certain boxes again. Write it on the notebook and draw a picture to go with your story. At the end, print off your finished story and bring it to class to share!

Parents, this year we have been talking about the different elements of a story. Students know that every story needs a beginning, middle, and end. We've talked about the purpose of writing or why we write, persuasive, entertainment, or informational. Every story also needs a character or two and a setting. And finally, they know that to make those characters and places come alive they need to use active and fun verbs and adjectives! Guide them through this fun and wacky assignment, making sure they use complete sentences to persuade, entertain, or inform us. Brainstorm with them verbs and adjectives to use in their story. And most importantly, have fun writing and creating with your children! 

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/story-starters/

Welcome to Class!

Welcome to our class' 4th grade page! Many exciting things are happening in class right now and to keep students and parents up-to-date with the latest class news, assignments, and even some funnies I have created this blog. Parents, please take the time to review assignments with your child. I will also list links that may assist you in helping your child in whatever reading skill we are working on that week, spelling words, or extra math practice. My hope is that this blog will help students in completing assignments and make them more involved in their own learning.